The Holy Spirit Moves Through The Scattered Church
In the book of Acts we read that the church was “scattered” – unable to gather in the same way as they were before. (Acts 8) They were facing persecution and other hardships that most of us have only read about.
However, God does an interesting thing through these scattered people. The Spirit moves in their midst wherever they go. They start to gather in living rooms and households. Because of this, folks are invited in who are curious to hear about why these people were following Jesus. Or perhaps some were just looking to belong and be loved.
The hardship that had scattered them was becoming how they began to live out Jesus invitation to be his “witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1)
Fast forward to today – we are experiencing the most unusual hardship that has faced the church since most of us have been alive!
As difficult as this time is – what might God be doing through the scattered church today?
The same Spirit is moving in our midst and can lead us in our physical as well as digital spaces to be witnesses of the Kingdom of God and to the freedom found in Jesus.
At the church I lead, Mill City Church we have always declared that the church is not a building or even a gathering, but the people of God on mission to join God’s redemptive work in the world. We exist to “love our community in the name of Jesus”. This crisis has only emboldened that mission! You have helped meet needs and loved your neighbors in tangible ways while also discovering how you can care for each other in this time. I’m so proud of you!
The inauguration of Jesus Kingdom displayed that God had left the building – and Mill City Church has officially left the building. Even though it has been a borrowed school building all along! This is also not the first time we’ve been “kicked out” of our building. We have pursued being a church that values agility more than we value stability.
We have no idea how long we will be scattered – and we long to be together physically again at some point in the future.
But until then – we will begin to experiment our way into the future God has for us even in this unusual time!
One of our first experiments is going to be what we are calling “Digital Neighborhoods and Living Rooms”. Using the online tool of Zoom, we are going to begin to connect people geographically online, hoping that soon small amounts of people can gather physically when it is safe and people feel ready. These groups will meet right after our worship service for a half hour with hosts ready to spark conversation.
These neighborhoods will be oriented around geography, but not limited to geography. They will be open and not exclusive so ANYONE can join in – especially spiritually curious neighbors and friends!
How might God’s Spirit draw people to Jesus and use us and our homes as a conduit for people coming to know Him?
Do existing Mill City friendships live across town from each other? People can join in any digital neighborhood!
Have a friend curious about Jesus but they don’t live close? No problem, invite them to your living room anyway!
Let’s breakdown the details of what this will look like:
- MCC Sunday Worship will continue to be streamed online on Facebook and YouTube. The service will be slightly shorter in part because of the Summer rhythms and the opportunity to enjoy the daylight.
- Everyone who we have an address for will be personally invited to a Digital Neighborhood. After the service they will be able to join their digital neighborhood on zoom.
- After a few minutes together as a large group, the facilitator will break the group into smaller Living Rooms. Studies show that Zoom calls are less tiring with smaller groups and allow for greater depth of conversation.
- The hosts will be encouraged to end the formal time within a half hour. Those who want to stay connected longer may choose ways to do so.
- As the health situation we are facing unfolds, groups may determine that some people would like to gather in physical living rooms/back yards etc. No one will be left out – the digital option will remain available for those who would like to stay home and for those at risk.
- Now that folks are connected geographically, the members can choose organic ways to connect, support each other and love their neighbors in the name of Jesus.
- These groups will have the opportunity to connect UP with God, IN with each other and to look OUT to love our neighbors as ourself. Together, they will listen and respond to God’s Spirit discerning how to join God one day at a time!
- Resources will also be given to support kids who are a part of the Neighborhoods. We love our kids and want them to know we see them as a part of the church now – not merely the future.
Getting Ready to Launch The Experiment
Mill City is about 200 households and around 350 adults, and about 90 kids 18 and under – for those who participate regularly. Here is what we did to get ready to launch:
Step 1: I shared with my Leadership Team/Elder Board the idea the staff had to connect people in this way. I did not approach this as something that needed to be approved or voted on because my community does not typically vote on programatic changes. However, the support of these leaders is critical.
Step 2: I gathered a wide group of leaders and stakeholders in Zoom call to explain the plan and vision. (I had about 37 people show up out of 80 I invited). I shared the idea and then opened it up to feedback. This gave a level of ownership and buy in. I asked them all to pray for us as we worked on next steps and to pray about their involvement.
Step 3: I circled back with the 37 a week later 32 said yes to “hosting”. I then hand picked those from the people who didn’t come to call and invite to join in. By the time I was done recruiting, there were over 50 “hosts” – if you count spouses and partners in the total.
Step 4: In the mean time, we have been doing a deep dive into our database trying to get or update physical addresses.
Step 5: I divided them up into 10 neighborhoods with a handful of hosts each – depending on the density of our people in their geographical area. I put one person as the neighborhood coordinator who will be my main contact and the one who is deemed with sending the emails and keeping their small group of hosts informed and connected to the staff.
Step 6: I hosted a training for the hosts a few days before the wider church announcement. We shared with the congregation through a Sunday worship service, social media and our website. We offered a form folks could fill out to show interest. Here we found out even more others who want to host etc as well as those who are really longing for something like this.
Step 7: Using our church Zoom account, we were able to add and say for additional hosts so that each neighborhood can meet at the same time.
Step 8: Emails were sent out to those within their geographical region inviting them to their “living room” and giving them the zoom details.
Step 9: We limited our service to one hour from 10-11am The first meetings will be hosted for the first half hour or 40 minutes after the service online.
Step 10: We followed up with all the leaders that week to establish a clear feedback loop and see what we learned from the first step of this experiment.
Step 11: Continue the process adapting as we learn from our feed back loop and as we continue to look and listen for God’s Spirit to move and lead.
Step 12: Experiment and adapt our way into God’s preferred future!
Would you like more content and equipping for innovative leaders in the church, non-profit sector and market place?
In the book of Acts we read that the church was “scattered” – unable to gather in the same way as they were before. (Acts 8) They were facing persecution and other hardships that most of us have only read about.
However, God does an interesting thing through these scattered people. The Spirit moves in their midst wherever they go. They start to gather in living rooms and households. Because of this, folks are invited in who are curious to hear about why these people were following Jesus. Or perhaps some were just looking to belong and be loved.
The hardship that had scattered them was becoming how they began to live out Jesus invitation to be his “witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1)
Fast forward to today – we are experiencing the most unusual hardship that has faced the church since most of us have been alive!
As difficult as this time is – what might God be doing through the scattered church today?
The same Spirit is moving in our midst and can lead us in our physical as well as digital spaces to be witnesses of the Kingdom of God and to the freedom found in Jesus.
At the church I lead, Mill City Church we have always declared that the church is not a building or even a gathering, but the people of God on mission to join God’s redemptive work in the world. We exist to “love our community in the name of Jesus”. This crisis has only emboldened that mission! You have helped meet needs and loved your neighbors in tangible ways while also discovering how you can care for each other in this time. I’m so proud of you!
The inauguration of Jesus Kingdom displayed that God had left the building – and Mill City Church has officially left the building. Even though it has been a borrowed school building all along! This is also not the first time we’ve been “kicked out” of our building. We have pursued being a church that values agility more than we value stability.
We have no idea how long we will be scattered – and we long to be together physically again at some point in the future.
But until then – we will begin to experiment our way into the future God has for us even in this unusual time!
One of our first experiments is going to be what we are calling “Digital Neighborhoods and Living Rooms”. Using the online tool of Zoom, we are going to begin to connect people geographically online, hoping that soon small amounts of people can gather physically when it is safe and people feel ready. These groups will meet right after our worship service for a half hour with hosts ready to spark conversation.
These neighborhoods will be oriented around geography, but not limited to geography. They will be open and not exclusive so ANYONE can join in – especially spiritually curious neighbors and friends!
How might God’s Spirit draw people to Jesus and use us and our homes as a conduit for people coming to know Him?
Do existing Mill City friendships live across town from each other? People can join in any digital neighborhood!
Have a friend curious about Jesus but they don’t live close? No problem, invite them to your living room anyway!
Let’s breakdown the details of what this will look like:
- MCC Sunday Worship will continue to be streamed online on Facebook and YouTube. The service will be slightly shorter in part because of the Summer rhythms and the opportunity to enjoy the daylight.
- Everyone who we have an address for will be personally invited to a Digital Neighborhood. After the service they will be able to join their digital neighborhood on zoom.
- After a few minutes together as a large group, the facilitator will break the group into smaller Living Rooms. Studies show that Zoom calls are less tiring with smaller groups and allow for greater depth of conversation.
- The hosts will be encouraged to end the formal time within a half hour. Those who want to stay connected longer may choose ways to do so.
- As the health situation we are facing unfolds, groups may determine that some people would like to gather in physical living rooms/back yards etc. No one will be left out – the digital option will remain available for those who would like to stay home and for those at risk.
- Now that folks are connected geographically, the members can choose organic ways to connect, support each other and love their neighbors in the name of Jesus.
- These groups will have the opportunity to connect UP with God, IN with each other and to look OUT to love our neighbors as ourself. Together, they will listen and respond to God’s Spirit discerning how to join God one day at a time!
- Resources will also be given to support kids who are a part of the Neighborhoods. We love our kids and want them to know we see them as a part of the church now – not merely the future.
Getting Ready to Launch The Experiment
Mill City is about 200 households and around 350 adults, and about 90 kids 18 and under – for those who participate regularly. Here is what we did to get ready to launch:
Step 1: I shared with my Leadership Team/Elder Board the idea the staff had to connect people in this way. I did not approach this as something that needed to be approved or voted on because my community does not typically vote on programatic changes. However, the support of these leaders is critical.
Step 2: I gathered a wide group of leaders and stakeholders in Zoom call to explain the plan and vision. (I had about 37 people show up out of 80 I invited). I shared the idea and then opened it up to feedback. This gave a level of ownership and buy in. I asked them all to pray for us as we worked on next steps and to pray about their involvement.
Step 3: I circled back with the 37 a week later 32 said yes to “hosting”. I then hand picked those from the people who didn’t come to call and invite to join in. By the time I was done recruiting, there were over 50 “hosts” – if you count spouses and partners in the total.
Step 4: In the mean time, we have been doing a deep dive into our database trying to get or update physical addresses.
Step 5: I divided them up into 10 neighborhoods with a handful of hosts each – depending on the density of our people in their geographical area. I put one person as the neighborhood coordinator who will be my main contact and the one who is deemed with sending the emails and keeping their small group of hosts informed and connected to the staff.
Step 6: I hosted a training for the hosts a few days before the wider church announcement. We shared with the congregation through a Sunday worship service, social media and our website. We offered a form folks could fill out to show interest. Here we found out even more others who want to host etc as well as those who are really longing for something like this.
Step 7: Using our church Zoom account, we were able to add and say for additional hosts so that each neighborhood can meet at the same time.
Step 8: Emails were sent out to those within their geographical region inviting them to their “living room” and giving them the zoom details.
Step 9: We limited our service to one hour from 10-11am The first meetings will be hosted for the first half hour or 40 minutes after the service online.
Step 10: We followed up with all the leaders that week to establish a clear feedback loop and see what we learned from the first step of this experiment.
Step 11: Continue the process adapting as we learn from our feed back loop and as we continue to look and listen for God’s Spirit to move and lead.
Step 12: Experiment and adapt our way into God’s preferred future!
Would you like more content and equipping for innovative leaders in the church, non-profit sector and market place?